DOT building catches fire

A North Carolina Department of Transportation building was gutted by a fire Tuesday morning.

According to the Sampson County dispatch, it received a call at 2:40 a.m. from a commuter who said there was an explosion at the DOT complex on North Boulevard in Clinton. The caller reported hearing the explosion while driving by the facility.

One building was gutted and some equipment including pickup trucks and a lawnmower were destroyed.

"We had two pickups that burned. We had two asphalt kettles that spray tar, they burned. They're destroyed," explained Lin Reynolds with the NCDOT.

Reynolds said a workshop area and truck shelter was scorched along with an attached kitchen.

"That's a total failure. At some point in time we'll have to remove it, I'm sure," said Reynolds.

No injuries were reported.

Losing the asphalt kettles will affect the DOT's pothole patching in Sampson County. The heaviest damage was near them, but it's not known yet if that's where the blaze began.

"Both kettles were used yesterday, I understand. The ignition source is turned off on the job site. So I don't, the SBI will help us rule that out, maybe," said Reynolds.

The State Bureau of Investigation will be involved in the investigation because the building is state owned.